Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Rached Ghannouchi

Lord Hylton: To ask His Majesty's Government what representations theyare making to the government of Tunisia following the sentencing of (1) imprisonment, and (2) a fine, of Mr Rached Ghannouchi, leader of that country’s largest political party.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We monitor the political and human rights situation in Tunisia closely. On 18 April, I [Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon] made clear the UK's view that the recent wave of arrests, including of Rached Ghannouchi and restrictions on political opposition in Tunisia were eroding the space for plurality. I reiterated this message during my meeting with the Tunisian Foreign Minister on 4 May. The UK continues to urge the Tunisian Government to respect the principles and values of an open and democratic society at every available opportunity.

Russia: Diamonds

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: To ask His Majesty's Government howthe sanctions imposed on Russian diamonds announced at the G7 go further than sanctions announced in 2022; and whether they will cover Russian diamonds processed in other places, particularly (1) the UAE, and (2) India.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: In 2022 the UK increased import duties by an additional 35 percentage points on a variety of precious and semiprecious stones and metals from Russia and Belarus, including rough and polished diamonds and sanctioned the Russian state-owned company Alrosa. Our recent announcement goes further and we will legislate later this year for a complete ban on the import of Russian diamonds. We will continue to work closely with our G7 partners to restrict trade in and use of Russian diamonds and engage with key partners with the aim of ensuring effective implementation of future coordinated restrictive measures.

Refugees: International Assistance

Lord Hylton: To ask His Majesty's Government which of the Recommendations from the High Level Officials Meeting of 2021 following the Global Refugee Forum in 2019, they consider not to apply to the UK; and, in each case, what is their primary reason for this assessment.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: The UK Government has not made a specific assessment of the recommendations made in 2021. However, the Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, in his previous role as Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, addressed the meeting in the following speech: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/minister-cleverly-intervention-at-global-compact-on-refugees-high-level-officials-meetingMin MENA global compact speech 14122021 (pdf, 218.5KB)

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Aviation

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask His Majesty's Government what was thetotal cost of the charter planes used by each of past three Foreign Secretaries.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: Foreign travel is a vital part of diplomacy. The work that ministers do overseas ultimately delivers for the British people. We have three government planes for Government business. They are used by Government Ministers for precisely this purpose. This is standard practice and in the national interest.In accordance with the Ministerial Code, the FCDO publishes the costs related to all overseas Ministerial travel as part of the regular Cabinet Office Transparency Return.https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fcdo-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings.https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/minister-data#2020

Colombia: Peace Negotiations

Baroness Coussins: To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions the Foreign Secretary held about the implementation of the Colombian peace agreement during his recent visit to that country; with whom; and with what outcome.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: During his visit to Colombia, the Foreign Secretary met with President Petro and Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva to discuss our ongoing support to the implementation of the 2016 Peace Agreement in Colombia. The Foreign Secretary committed £3.6 million from the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) in 2023/24 to support the implementation of the Peace Agreement and improve stability and security. Through the CSSF, which has now committed £80 million since 2015, our funding will continue to support the Colombian Government's rural development and reintegration programmes, transitional justice mechanisms, and help strengthen the security and participation of communities in conflict-affected areas.

Malaria: Disease Control

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick: To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to contribute to eradicating malaria withinthe foreseeable future.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: The UK is a global leader in supporting work towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 3.3 to end the epidemic of malaria by 2030. The UK recently pledged £1 billion for the seventh replenishment of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria which accounts for 63 per cent of all international funding for malaria programmes. We also continue to play a leading role in research and development, including supporting the Innovative Vector Control Consortium to develop novel bed-nets and Oxford University to develop a new generation of antimalarial medicines to address the threat from emerging drug resistance.

Malaria: Life Sciences

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick: To ask His Majesty's Government, following the World Health Organization'sWorld Malaria Day on 25 April, what assessment they have made of the UK’s malaria science sector.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: The UK is a world leader in the life sciences, and British science is at the cutting edge of fighting malaria. We will continue to play a world-leading role in research and innovations to combat this disease. This includes support to the Liverpool-based Innovative Vector Control Consortium to develop novel bed-nets and to Oxford University to develop a new generation of antimalarial medicines to address the threat posed by emerging drug resistance. We have also funded research to evaluate the role of malaria vaccines when deployed in combination with seasonal administration of antimalarials, led by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Department for Education

Apprentices: Taxation

Lord Knight of Weymouth: To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of the apprenticeship levy in 2021–22 was (1) spent by levy payers on apprenticeships in their own organisations, (2) handed down to supply chain firms to spend on apprenticeships, and (3) spent by His Majesty’s Government on apprenticeships training for SMEs.

Baroness Barran: The UK Government, via HM Revenue and Customs, collects an apprenticeship levy of 0.5% on total payroll from businesses across the UK with an annual payroll expenditure of more than £3 million.From this, HM Treasury sets an English apprenticeships budget for the department, and the devolved governments receive a share of the funding calculated using the Barnett formula.The apprenticeships budget in England is used to fund training and assessment for new apprenticeship starts for all employers of all sizes, both those who pay the levy and those who do not, and to cover the ongoing costs of apprentices already in training and any additional payments made to employers, providers and apprentices. The department’s apprenticeship budget for the 2021/22 financial year was £2,466 million and total spend was £2,455 million, meaning 99.6% of the apprenticeships budget was spent.The table below shows the percentage of the apprenticeship spend against the budget by levy payers and non-levy payers in the 2021/22 financial year, including the percentage spend by levy paying employers through levy transfers to other employers. It also reflects the spend on apprenticeships that started prior to the introduction of the apprenticeship levy reform, and non-apprenticeships training, such as the cost of running the apprenticeship service, marketing, and communications campaigns.Apprenticeship Spend2021/22 financial year (£ million)% Spend against BudgetLevy payers1,59265%Of which: via levy transfer 2%Non-Levy payers81733%Pre-apprenticeship levy reforms70%Non-apprenticeships training spend 392%Total Spend2,455100%

Home Office

Animal Experiments

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to Written Answer by Lord Markham on 28 March (HL6448), how many animals, and of what type, are currently used in licensed laboratories for pyrogen testing.

Lord Sharpe of Epsom: The Home Office publishes annual statistics on the use of animals in scientific procedures. The statistics can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/animals-in-science-statisticsThe most recent statistics for 2021 show that no procedures have been carried on animals for quality control pyrogenicity testing for regulatory use since 2019 (data table 7.1).Pyrogen testing could be recorded under other categories in the statistics. However, the statistics do not break down the data by test type for non-regulatory or other regulatory purposes.Annual statistics 2021 (pdf, 1037.0KB)

Human Trafficking

Lord McColl of Dulwich: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the National Referral Mechanism data for January to March 2023, what is the breakdown of positive reasonable grounds decisions for adults and children by (1) month, (2) the number of British nationals, and (3) the number of non-British nationals.

Lord McColl of Dulwich: To ask His Majesty's Government how manyduty-to-notify notices were received for potential victims of modern slavery between 7 March and 30 April this year compared to the same period in 2022.

Lord Murray of Blidworth: The Home Office publishes quarterly and annual statistics regarding the National Referral Mechanism (NRM). The Q1 2023 statistics can be found here;https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1154119/modern-slavery-national-referral-mechanism-statistics-uk-quarter-1-2023-january-to-march-tables.odsThe data shows the number of duty to notify notices (DTN) received from January to March 2023 and the number of reasonable grounds decisions made per quarter.Further disaggregated data which shows nationality and whether the potential victim was an adult or child at the time of exploitation is published via the UK Data Service.The DTN data related to April 2023 will be part of the Q2 statistics which is due to be published in August 2023.Q1 2023 -january-to-march-tables. (xlsx, 719.9KB)

Firearms: Licensing

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect on freedom of speech of paragraph 3.10 of the Statutory Guidance for Chief Officers of Police on Firearms Licensing issued in February.

Lord Sharpe of Epsom: We have not made an assessment of the impact on freedom of speech of paragraph 3.10 of the Statutory Guidance for Chief Officers of Police on firearms licensing. This paragraph sets out some of the factors to be considered by police forces when assessing the suitability of an individual to be granted a firearms certificate.The Statutory Guidance was issued for the first time on 1 November 2021. Following a review undertaken by the Home Office after its first year of operation, a refreshed version of the Statutory Guidance was issued on 14 February 2023. There were no changes made to this particular paragraph. The factors highlighted in this paragraph are also based on earlier versions of the chapter on assessing suitability that appeared in the non-statutory Home Office guides. We will continue to keep the Statutory Guidance under review.

China: Sanctions

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of any attempts by Chinese officials to target family members of British parliamentarians who are currently subject to sanctions by the People's Republic of China.

Lord Sharpe of Epsom: We continually assess potential threats in the UK, and take protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK very seriously. We are committed to tackling this challenge wherever it originates. Attempts by foreign Governments to coerce, intimidate, harass, or harm their critics overseas, undermining democracy and the rule of law, are unacceptable. MPs should always contact Parliamentary Security in the first instance if they experience any such behaviour. Parliamentary Security works closely with the security agencies to mitigate and manage any threats. More broadly, we are driving forward work to protect the democratic integrity of the UK, including from threats of foreign interference, through the Defending Democracy Taskforce.

Department for Business and Trade

Economic Situation

Lord Allen of Kensington: To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect to report on the outcomes ofthe review of economic regulation.

The Earl of Minto: We are expecting to publish the review of economic regulation in the coming months, delivering on the Government’s commitment to drive growth through the activities of key economic regulators (Ofgem, Ofcom and Ofwat), as published in the Smarter Regulation to Grow the Economy policy paper on 10 May 2023.Smarter Regulation to Grow the Economy (pdf, 359.8KB)

Women and Equalities

Gender: Equality

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report Burnt Out Britainpublished by the think tank Onward on 3 April, regarding (1) gender disparities in time spent on childcare, (2) gender disparities in time spent on housework, (3) the fragmentation of free time, and (4) the effect of the foregoing on the mental health of Britons.

Baroness Scott of Bybrook: The ‘Burnt Out Britain’ Onward report raises a number of important issues, particularly in relation to the ways in which modern life has a disproportionate impact on women. The report highlights areas of particular concern to women including pay disparities and more time spent on domestic tasks and childcare (in comparison to men). It attributes overarching issues regarding the pace of modern lifestyles to digital technology and different choices that people make with regards to employment and domestic arrangements. The report also recognises that, while Government does have a part to play in responding to and tackling particular aspects of these issues, this is a limited role in many cases. Government is committed to enabling all women to thrive and to reach their full potential, which is why steps have been taken to ensure that all parents are able to balance work and family life. Actions include:Over £3.5 billion in each of the past 3 years on our early education entitlements to support families with the cost of childcare. At this year’s Budget, the Chancellor announced that by 2027-28, this Government will expect to be spending in excess of £8bn every year on free hours and early education. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever. Shared parental leave and pay, so that both parents can be part of those crucial early years. Our online tool is now making it easier for parents to check if they are eligible for leave and pay, and plan their leave and pay. Making it easier for everyone to access flexible working. We have committed to give all employees the right to request flexible working from their first day of employment, through support for the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Private Members’ Bill. This will ensure that an additional estimated 2.2 million people will be able to request changes to the hours, times, or place of work; so that they can also have more control over their free time. The Government’s Women’s Health Strategy, published last year, set out our 10 year ambitions for boosting the care of women and girls. One of the priority areas identified by the strategy was mental health and wellbeing, with the report outlining how the Government will ensure delivery partners are equipped to develop tailored plans and interventions that meet the needs of different groups.

Treasury

Block Grant: Wales

Lord Morrow: To ask His Majesty's Government how much funding was added to the Welsh block grant as a result of the 2016agreement on the WelshGovernment’s fiscal framework in each financial year from 2017/18 to 2021/22.

Baroness Penn: The Block Grant Transparency publication sets out a full breakdown of funding for the Welsh Government, including the impact of the 5% uplift. The publication is regularly updated after each UK Budget. The next update is expected before summer recess following Spring Budget 2023. The most recent publication can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/block-grant-transparency-december-2021

Motor Vehicles: Excise Duties

Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown: To ask His Majesty's Government how much was collected in (1) road and (2) petrol, tax during the last two years for which information is available; and how much of that was invested in roads.

Baroness Penn: Receipts for Vehicle Excise Duty (‘road tax’) and fuel duties, which incorporate various types of fuel including petrol (‘petrol tax’) for the last two available years were set out by the Office of Budget Responsibility in March 2022 and March 2023, and are as follows: Vehicle Excise Duty, 2021-22: £7.1bnFuel duties, 2021-22: £25.9bnVehicle Excise Duty, 2020-21: £6.9bnFuel duties, 2020-21: £27.6bn Income raised by the government, including tax receipts but also income from fees, charges or borrowing, is centralised in the Consolidated Fund - from which government expenditure, including on roads, is funded. Government spending on roads in the same time period is set out by the Department for Transport on gov.uk, and is as follows: Strategic road network in England, 2021/22: £5.6bnCapital funding for local roads maintenance in England (outside London), 2021/22: £1.4bnStrategic road network in England 2020/21: £5bnCapital funding for local roads maintenance in England (outside London), 2020/21: £1.8bn

Consumers: Protection

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to strengthen consumer protection measures, particularly for loans, for the 2023–24 financial year.

Baroness Penn: The government is committed to promoting high standards of consumer protection, to ensure that everyone can benefit from high quality financial services, including in the consumer lending market. On 16 June 2022, the government announced its intention to reform the Consumer Credit Act 1974, which forms a key part of the regulation of consumer credit (including personal loans), and recently consulted on the strategic direction of reform. Modernising the CCA will ensure that protections afforded to consumers are fit for purpose and are in step with technological advancements and product innovation. The government will seek to maintain high levels of consumer protection and consider what changes are required to existing protections to ensure better consumer outcomes. The government intends to publish a response to this consultation soon and develop detailed reform proposals ahead of a second consultation in due course. The government is also working to bring currently unregulated Buy-Now Pay-Later (BNPL) products into Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulation, recognising the potential detriment these products may pose to consumers. On 14 February 2023, the government published a consultation on the draft legislation that will bring BNPL products into FCA regulation in a proportionate way. This consultation closed on 11 April. The government is now carefully considering stakeholder feedback and is finalising its approach. In addition, the Government legislated in the Financial Services Act 2021 to require the FCA to consult on whether it should make rules giving regulated financial service providers a duty of care over their customers. Following extensive engagement with stakeholders, the FCA published a final Policy Statement on 27 July 2022 on its new Consumer Duty. The Consumer Duty will clarify and raise expectations for the standard of care that should be provided by financial services firms to consumers. The rules will come into effect for new and existing products in July 2023.

Public Expenditure: Northern Ireland

Lord Kilclooney: To ask His Majesty's Government what was the most recentannual credit to Northern Ireland as a result of the Barnett Formula.

Baroness Penn: As set out recently in the Main Estimates memoranda, the Northern Ireland Executive has received £2.0 billion through the Barnett formula for 2023-24 on top of the Spending Review 2021 baseline. This means the Northern Ireland Executive’s total block grant (Total DEL) funding for 2023-24 is £15.8 billion.

Financial Institutions: Disclosure of Information

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty's Government how many cases of whistleblowing were (1) reported, and (2) investigated, by the Prudential Regulation Authority in (a) 2020 (b) 2021, (c) 2022, and (d) 2023.

Baroness Penn: The Prudential Regulation Authority has reported and investigated the following number of whistleblowing cases for each year given: In 2022-2023, 197;In 2021-2022, 166;In 2020-2021, 201;In 2019-2020, 224. As a Prescribed Person under the Public Interest Disclosure Act, the PRA has made this information publicly available in its Annual Report and Accounts since 2015/16.

Financial Services: Disclosure of Information

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty's Government how many cases of whistleblowing were (1) reported, and (2) investigated, by the Financial Conduct Authority in (a)2020 (b) 2021, (c) 2022, and (d) 2023.

Baroness Penn: The FCA has reported and investigated the following number of whistleblowing cases for each year given: in 2021-2022, 1,119 cases;in 2020-2021, 1,153 cases;in 2019-2020, 1,046 cases. As a Prescribed Person under the Public Interest Disclosure Act, the FCA has made this information publicly available in its Annual Report and Accounts since 2017. Figures for 2022-2023 will be published in July in the FCA’s upcoming Prescribed Persons report.

Apprentices: Taxation

Lord Knight of Weymouth: To ask His Majesty's Government how many companies in England paid the apprenticeship levy in 2021–22.

Baroness Penn: There are an estimated 27,300 businesses (rounded to the nearest 100) with headquarters registered in England that paid the Apprenticeship Levy in tax year 2021 to 2022. Please note that this estimate is based on where employer headquarters are registered, and therefore does not necessarily reflect where the liabilities are accrued. This does not include businesses with headquarters registered in Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland, who have a presence and pay employees in England. Meanwhile, this includes businesses with headquarters registered in England, who have a presence and pay employees in Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland, but it assumes that the total pay bill is within England.

Apprentices: Taxation

Lord Knight of Weymouth: To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will provide a full breakdown of what the £3.2 billion raised by the apprenticeship levy in 2021–22, as reported by HMRC, has been spent on.

Baroness Penn: The Apprenticeship Levy is a key part of the Government’s reforms to the apprenticeship system to enable employers of all sizes to make a long-term, sustainable and high-quality investment in training.The Apprenticeship Levy is charged at a rate of 0.5% of an employer’s annual pay bill. An annual Apprenticeship Levy allowance of £15,000 means that only those employers with an annual pay bill of over £3 million will have to pay and report the levy.In England, the Department for Education is allocated an annual apprenticeships budget which is agreed at Spending Review. This budget is used to fund training and assessment for new apprenticeship starts in all employers – levy and non-levy paying employers alike – across England, and to cover the ongoing costs of apprentices already in training and any additional payments made to employers and providers. This means that in England, levy payers’ unspent funds are used to support additional costs and apprenticeships in smaller employers.In the 2021-22 financial year the total spend on apprenticeships in England was £2,455 million against the budget of £2,466 million, meaning that 99.6% of the apprenticeships budget was spent. Any underspends are retained in line with standard practice as per the Consolidated Budgeting Guidance.Apprenticeship policy and spending is devolved meaning the devolved administrations receive funding through the Barnett formula. While the Barnett formula is applied to changes in departmental funding, rather than to budgets for specific programmes, this essentially accounts for how the residual levy revenues are used. It is for the devolved administrations to allocate their funding in devolved areas as they see fit, including investing in their skills programmes.If the employer is levy-paying, with operations based wholly or partly in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, they will need to engage with the relevant funding authorities for funding apprenticeships located there. Authorities in each of the UK nations manage their own apprenticeship programmes, including how funding is spent on apprenticeship training.

Department for Transport

Public Transport: Rural Areas

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to develop public transport infrastructure in rural areas; and what assessment they have made of the impact this will have on the mental health of people living in rural communities.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: We are providing £300m funding for buses until April 2025. £150m will be available from July 23 to March 24, and a further £150m from April 24 to March 25. Almost half of the additional funding will be provided to bus operators based on the distance of the routes that they operate. This will allow us to focus funding on longer routes, such as those in rural areas, where some services are less likely to be commercially sustainable without additional funding. In 2021, we launched a £20 million Rural Mobility Fund (RMF) to trial more demand responsive minibus services in rural and suburban areas. 16 pilots are taking place across 15 different local authorities, including one in Warwickshire. The RMF provides us with an opportunity to better understand the challenges associated with introducing bookable bus services in rural and suburban settings. Through our Tackling Loneliness with Transport fund, we’ve supported twelve projects with over £5 million of investment targeted at those most likely to suffer from loneliness. Findings from these pilot schemes are being evaluated and will be used to build an evidence base which will inform how future transport schemes can contribute to reducing loneliness in communities.

Department of Health and Social Care

Dentistry: Vacancies

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address staff shortages within NHS dentistry.

Lord Markham: In July 2022, we announced a package of dental system improvements to increase access for National Health Service dental patients and make NHS dentistry more attractive to practices. NHS England negotiated amendments to the NHS dental contract with the British Dental Association and other stakeholders. These improvements, which came into effect in November 2022, will ensure dentists are more fairly remunerated for the delivery of NHS care and making NHS dentistry a more attractive place to work and improve access for patients.We have also recently simplified the General Dental Council's legislative framework for the registration of international dentists and dental care professionals (DCPs). The legislative changes came into force on 8 March 2023. We will announce our plan for further reform of the NHS dental system later this year. It will include several areas requiring further action to support and recover activity in NHS dentistry. We are also committed to publishing a long-term NHS workforce plan that will set out the actions and reforms that are required to reduce supply gaps and improve retention, including in dentistry.

Mental Health Services: Administrative Delays

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government whatsteps they are taking to tackle the reported backlog of people requiring urgent mental health support.

Lord Markham: The NHS Long Term Plan commits an additional £2.3 billion a year for the expansion and transformation of mental health services in England by 2024 so that an additional two million people can get the National Health Service funded mental health support that they need.To support people experiencing mental health crisis better we are delivering the commitment to make urgent mental health support universally available via NHS111, rolling-out specialised mental health ambulances, supported by £7 million of capital investment and embedding mental health professionals in all emergency operations centres and improving mental health training for ambulance staff.To reduce pressure on urgent and emergency care, we provided our delivery plan for recovering urgent and emergency care services which aims to deliver one of the fastest and longest sustained improvements in waiting times in the NHS's history. Through this plan we are adding 5,000 additional beds to the permanent bed base ahead of next winter and scaling up virtual wards, delivering 800 new ambulances, including the specialist mental health ambulances and expanding community services including falls, frailty and community response teams. We have already seen average ambulance response times for Category 2 incidents improve by nearly an hour since December 2022 from 1 hour 32 minutes 54 seconds to 33 minutes 26 seconds by April 2023.

Ophthalmic Services: Special Educational Needs

Baroness Finlay of Llandaff: To ask His Majesty's Government when theindependent evaluation of the NHS Special Schools Eye Care Service will be made publicly available

Baroness Finlay of Llandaff: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take together with NHS England to ensurethat children currently in receipt of the NHS Special Schools Eye Care Service who attend day special schools will continue to access the service to meet their needs.

Lord Markham: The NHS Long Term Plan made a commitment to ensure that children and young people with a learning disability and/or autism in special residential schools have access to sight checks in school. To fulfil that commitment, NHS England commenced a proof-of-concept programme in 2021, piloting sight testing and the dispensing of glasses in special schools.NHS England are currently considering the evaluation of this special school programme, to determine how services to meet the eye care needs of children with learning disabilities in school settings should be commissioned and will set out next steps shortly.

Health Services: Older People

Baroness Hodgson of Abinger: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to (1) prevent ill health, and (2) promote staying healthy, among older people.

Lord Markham: We work to support the health needs of, and prevent ill health in, older people through a variety of action. This includes the NHS Health Check, which detects people at risk of developing cardiovascular disease in later life, and an ambitious prevention agenda to tackle the most common preventable diseases among older people. For example, encouraging people in mid-life to stop smoking, reduce their alcohol consumption and improve their diet to help reduce the risk of developing dementia, disability and frailty in later life.The Government will also publish a Major Conditions Strategy which will set out a strong and coherent policy agenda that sets out a shift to integrated, whole-person care. The Strategy will tackle conditions that contribute most to morbidity and mortality across the population in England including cancers, cardiovascular disease, including stroke and diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, dementia, mental ill health and musculoskeletal conditions. An interim report will be published in the summer.

Immunosuppression

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty's Government how many clinically extremely vulnerable and immunocompromised people are living in the England.

Lord Markham: During the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, patients deemed to be clinically extremely vulnerable patients were advised to shield or take extra precautions. The success of the COVID-19 vaccination programme has meant that people who were part of this patient cohort are no longer at substantially greater risk than the general population and so are advised to follow the same guidance as everyone else on staying safe and preventing the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory infections.The definition and number of clinically extremely vulnerable and immunocompromised population has evolved as patients are diagnosed or complete treatment courses that remove their vulnerability.However, there remains a smaller number of people whose weakened immune system means they may be at higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19, despite vaccination. This cohort remain a priority for the Government and as such, are offered enhanced protections such as treatments, booster vaccines, free lateral flow tests and public health advice.The current assessment of the population in England at higher risk for COVID and therefore eligible for assessment for COVID-19 therapeutic treatments options is 2.5 to 3 million patients.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Bees

Baroness Kennedy of Cradley: To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of the health of the bee population in the UK.

Lord Benyon: The bee population is comprised of wild bees, of which there are more than 250 species in the UK, and honey bee colonies managed by beekeepers and bee farmers. Defra’s indicator of the status of pollinating insects was last published in December 2022. Within this wider indicator, the wild bee index fluctuates around its initial value over much of the time series, and in 2019 (the latest year for which we have published data) it was estimated to be 2% higher than in 1980. However, a larger proportion of bee species have declined than increased over the long term (33% declined and 22% increased), as well as over the short term, (37% declined and 28% increased). The wider pollinating insect indicator identifies changes in the distribution of wild bees and hoverflies in the UK and shows an overall decrease from 1987 onwards. In 2019 the indicator had declined by 21% compared to its value in 1980 and 6% compared to its value in 2014. Protecting pollinators such as bees, and halting their decline, is a priority, and we are taking action to support them and the wider natural environment of which they are a vital component. Our legally binding target to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030 underlines our ambition. The Government is working alongside many partners to implement the provisions in the National Pollinator Strategy. The Strategy sets out how Government, conservation groups, farmers, beekeepers and researchers can work together to improve the status of wild and managed pollinating insect species in England on farmland, in urban areas and in gardens. Additionally, our Pollinator Action Plan for 2021-2024 sets out more specifically how we will continue to act to fulfil the vision, aims and objectives of the strategy. Our annual Hive Count exercise indicates that numbers of managed honey bees have increased in recent years, from around 252,000 UK colonies in 2017 to 288,000 in 2022. Defra supports the honey bee population through the work of the National Bee Unit inspectorate, which operates our bee pest surveillance programmes and provides free training and advice to beekeepers, including on pest and disease recognition. Bee health is a devolved matter. However, Defra and the Welsh Government work together on bee health and, in 2020, we jointly published the Healthy Bees Plan 2030. The Welsh Government also funds the National Bee Unit to deliver a bee health programme in Wales.

Ministry of Justice

Local Criminal Justice Boards

Lord Garnier: To ask His Majesty's Government how manyLocal Criminal Justice Boards there are in (1) England, and (2) Wales.

Lord Bellamy: There are 41 Local Criminal Justice Boards (LCJBs) in total, 37 in England and 4 in Wales.Information on the running and membership of LCJBs can be found in the National Guidance at: National Guidance for Local Criminal Justice Boards (publishing.service.gov.uk).

Local Criminal Justice Boards

Lord Garnier: To ask His Majesty's Government what was the date of the last two meetings of each Local Criminal Justice Board.

Lord Garnier: To ask His Majesty's Government whether any Local Criminal Justice Boards have achieved the recommendation in the National Guidance for Local Criminal Justice Boards that they meet at least quarterly, for the past year for which information is available; and if so, which boards met this target.

Lord Bellamy: The Ministry of Justice does not hold this information. Local Criminal Justice Boards are voluntary partnerships and are not governed by statute and are not an executive body. We do not therefore keep a record of meeting dates.

Criminal Justice Board

Lord Garnier: To ask His Majesty's Government when the lastCriminal Justice Board meeting took place; and when the next one will take place.

Lord Bellamy: The Criminal Justice Board last met on 12 July 2021. We are looking to hold the next meeting later this year.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Electricity: Standing Charges

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made ofthe impact of the increase in standing charges on household electricity bills on households; and the extent to which this may be impacting on inflation.

Lord Callanan: Standing charges are capped under the price cap, set by Ofgem, and ensure millions of households pay a fair price for their energy. The setting of the standing charge is a commercial matter for individual suppliers. The standing charge reflects the on-going costs that fall on a supplier to provide and maintain a live supply to a customer.

Energy: Prices

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government whatsteps they are taking to introduce an energy price guarantee for the average household to replace Ofgem’s energy price cap.

Lord Callanan: As announced in the Spring Budget, the Energy Price Guarantee has been extended at £2,500 for an additional three months from April to the end of June. Current projections expect Ofgem's Price Cap to fall below the Government's Energy Price Guarantee from 1st July, meaning that households will pay the lower rate set by the Price Cap. We intend to consult in Summer 2023 on options for a new approach to consumer protection in the energy markets from April 2024 onwards.

Warm Home Discount Scheme: Immunotherapy and Transplant Surgery

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for extending the Warm Home Discount Scheme to all stem cell transplant and CAR-T therapy recipients, who require a warm home for recovery.

Lord Callanan: The Warm Home Discount prioritises people who are most at risk of being in fuel poverty. Fuel poverty is a combination of low incomes and high energy costs, so the scheme is targeted at those on means tested benefits whose homes are expensive to heat. Stem cell transplant and CAR-T therapy recipients do not automatically fall into that category. These households may be able to speak to their energy supplier about being added to their Priority Services Register, which provides additional support for vulnerable households, such as priority support in an emergency.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Property Development: Planning Permission

Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee: To ask His Majesty's Government what is the average time taken for planning decisions to be made for significant development projects.

Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee: To ask His Majesty's Government what is the average time taken from referral to the beginning of a planning application for significant development projects.

Baroness Scott of Bybrook: The available information shows that, during the five quarters from 1 October 2021 to 31 December 2022, local planning authorities made 53 decisions on major public service infrastructure developments. Of these, 46 were decided on time: eight within ten weeks and 38 within the period agreed within a performance agreement.Figures for the available quarters are available in the PS2 CSV open data file here.Figures for available quarters  (xlsx, 1395.9KB)

Raw Materials: Planning Permission

Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee: To ask His Majesty's Government to ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by the British Geological Survey, Potential for Critical Raw Material Prospectivity in the UK, published on 17 April, which identified potentially strategically important deposits throughout the UK; and what assessment they have made of the ability of local planning authorities to process related planning applications efficiently.

Baroness Scott of Bybrook: 'Potential for Critical Raw Material Prospectivity in the UK' was a study undertaken by the Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre, a programme sponsored by the Department for Business and Trade and delivered by the British Geological Survey. This report delivers on the Critical Minerals Strategy's commitment to collate geoscientific data and identify target areas of potential for critical minerals within the UK. It is a preliminary assessment, and its findings do not mean that the prospective areas identified will necessarily be targeted for exploration and mining. The Government is working with the British Geological Survey to understand next steps.The Government recognises that many local planning authorities are facing capacity and capability challenges. To make sure that local planning authorities are able to deliver an effective planning service and our proposed reforms we are developing a programme of support, working with partners across the planning sector. The capacity and capability programme will seek to provide the direct support that is needed now, deliver training opportunities for existing planners, and further develop the future pipeline into the profession. In addition, we recently consulted on proposals to increase planning fees by 35% for major applications and 25% for all other applications to increase resourcing and improve the performance of local planning authorities.